Cited by 752Stress Responses and CortisolNeuroendocrine regulation and behaviorNeurotransmitter Receptor Influence on Behavior

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Sex differences and stress across the lifespan

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Bale, Tracy L, Epperson, C Neill·2015·Nature Neuroscience

DOI 10.1038/nn.4112PMC PMC4620712

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Abstract

Sex differences in stress responses can be found at all stages of life and are related to both the organizational and activational effects of gonadal hormones and to genes on the sex chromosomes. As stress dysregulation is the most common feature across neuropsychiatric diseases, sex differences in how these pathways develop and mature may predict sex-specific periods of vulnerability to disruption and increased disease risk or resilience across the lifespan. The aging brain is also at risk to the effects of stress, where the rapid decline of gonadal hormones in women combined with cellular aging processes promote sex biases in stress dysregulation. In this Review, we discuss potential underlying mechanisms driving sex differences in stress responses and their relevance to disease. Although stress is involved in a much broader range of diseases than neuropsychiatric ones, we highlight here this area and its examples across the lifespan.

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Authors: Bale, T. L., & Epperson, C. N.
Affiliations: University of Pennsylvania (US)
Corresponding author: Bale, Tracy L
ORCID: Bale, Tracy L
Epperson, C Neill
Venue: Nature Neuroscience
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Published: 2015-09-25
Volume: 18
Issue: 10
Pages: 1413-1420
ISSN: 1097-6256 (ISSN-L)
1546-1726
DOI: 10.1038/nn.4112
PMC: PMC4620712
OpenAlex: W1734948187
Cited by: 751
References: 150
Citations by year: 2026: 70 · 2025: 89 · 2024: 61 · 2023: 52 · 2022: 74 · 2021: 91 · 2020: 70 · 2019: 72 · 2018: 81 · 2017: 46 · 2016: 44
FWCI: 4.55
Type: journal article
Language: en
Open access: green
www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
Licence: www.springer.com/tdm (tdm)
Locations: Nature Neuroscience (publishedVersion)
PubMed (publishedVersion)
Europe PMC (PubMed Central) (acceptedVersion)
PubMed Central (acceptedVersion)
Funders: National Institutes of Health (5r01mh091258-05)
National Institute on Aging (R01AG048839, AG048839)
National Institute of Mental Health (P50MH099910, R37MH108286, MH087597, MH 104184, MH 091258, MH099910, R01MH073030, MH 073030, R33MH104184, MH 108286, R01 MH-091258, R21MH104184, R01MH087597)
National Institute on Drug Abuse (R01DA037289, DA030301, K24DA030301)
Topics: Life Sciences › Neuroscience › Behavioral Neuroscience › Stress Responses and Cortisol
Life Sciences › Neuroscience › Endocrine and Autonomic Systems › Neuroendocrine regulation and behavior
Life Sciences › Neuroscience › Cellular and Molecular Neuroscience › Neurotransmitter Receptor Influence on Behavior
Keywords: sex differences, stress, stress dysregulation, lifespan development, gonadal hormones, organizational effects, activational effects, sex chromosomes, neuropsychiatric disorders, resilience, brain aging, cellular aging
MeSH terms: Aging, Animals, Brain, Female, Humans, Longevity, Male, Sex Characteristics, Stress, Psychological

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Sex differences and stress across the lifespan

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